SONICS: Live From the Press Box

Live From the Press Box - Sonics vs. Utah

Want to enjoy the electricity of at KeyArena even if you're thousands of miles away? SUPERSONICS.COM's Live From the Press Box in-game blog is your best bet. All night and all season long, Kevin Pelton will be bringing you pregame quotes, analysis and observations from the game. E-mail Kevin at sonicsconnection@sonics-storm.com. Make sure to keep coming back or refreshing so you get the latest content.

Wild Finish Favors Utah
Final: Utah 103, Sonics 101

Wow, what a crazy finish. The Sonics turned the ball over again when Chris Wilcox had the ball raked away from him by Mehmet Okur working in the post. The Sonics were forced to foul, but it was only their first of the last two minutes. Utah had to inbound the ball and failed to do so, with Kevin Durant tipping Andrei Kirilenko's pass toward Jeff Green. Durant ended up with the ball and drove hard with time running out. Kirilenko made the saving play, flying in to get a piece of Durant's attempt. The clock run out before either side could secure the loose ball.

Heartbreaking finish, but the Sonics could easily have won this game had a ball bounced their way instead of Utah's. The Sonics played exceptional basketball in the fourth quarter to rally and briefly take the lead. They got lots of great production off the bench tonight. Jeff Green had the best game of his young career, scoring 19 points. Nick Collison had a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds and Delonte West's 10 points were almost all crucial in the fourth quarter. The Sonics did a solid job of holding a dangerous Utah team in check, but tonight it was not quiet enough.

The Sonics will be back here at KeyArena Sunday to face another tough opponent, the Detroit Pistons. We'll kick off Kids at the Key Sundays with a great giveaway. The first 10,000 fans receive a retro lunchbox courtesy of Aquafina featuring Sonics players Luke Ridnour, Earl Watson, Chris Wilcox and Jeff Green. Don't miss this great matchup before the Sonics head out on the road. Get your tickets now!

Boozer Puts Jazz Up
Fourth Quarter: Utah 103, Sonics 101

The Sonics turned the ball over trying to run a pick-and-roll. Down came Utah to the other end to execute the pick-and-roll that has worked only seven or eight billion times since Jerry Sloan became head coach of the Jazz. Carlos Boozer ended up with a layup at the rim to give Utah the lead. Still tons of time left - 17.6 seconds after a 20-second timeout..

Chance to Lead
Fourth Quarter: Utah 101, Sonics 101

The crowd is on its feet as the Sonics take timeout with 43.0 seconds left to play. Incredible action at both ends has left us tied at 101 apiece. Jeff Green scored for the Sonics on a turnaround coming out of the timeout, followed by a Deron Williams jumper after the Sonics nearly came up with a big steal. The Sonics have forced misses by Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur, while Durant - who blocked Boozer's shot, coming out of nowhere - tied the game on a floater in the paint. Big-time play for a rookie.

Chance to Tie
Fourth Quarter: Utah 99, Sonics 97

The crowd groaned when, with the Jazz leading by four, Mehmet Okur got a look at an open jumper angle left (not sure if it was a two or a three). Alas, a moment after hitting a jumper from nearly the exact same spot, Okur misfired on this attempt and Kevin Durant came out of traffic with the rebounding, sprinting the other direction. Delonte West finished the play with an off-balance banker off glass. Now, the Sonics have forced a Ronnie Brewer turnover trying to catch an entry pass. After our final media timeout of the game the Sonics will have possession with a chance to tie or take the lead with 2:24 left to play.

The Sonics are going with a lineup of West, Durant, Jeff Green, Chris Wilcox and Nick Collison. Utah has its starters on the floor.

This Isn't Going to be Easy
Fourth Quarter: Utah 93, Sonics 91

The Utah Jazz is providing a pretty good reminder right now of why they won the Northwest Division and advanced to the Western Conference Finals last season. This is a very difficult team to step in half-court sets. They can go a lot of different places with the basketball. Of the Utah starters, all of whom are on the floor, only Mehmet Okur (nine) has not scored double-figures. Still, Carlos Boozer is clearly the Jazz's go-to player. He's got 23 points on 8-of-16 shooting and has recorded his sixth straight double-double.

The Sonics have gotten needed offense from Delonte West, who has six of his eight points in the fourth quarter, and Jeff Green. Green has now scored a career-high 17 points after dropping in a gorgeous left-hand runner for the last Sonics score.

The Key is Rocking
Fourth Quarter: Sonics 83, Utah 80

The crowd here at KeyArena loves the way the Sonics have started this fourth quarter of play. They opened up with a 6-0 run, capped by a Kevin Durant runner plus the harm that gave the Sonics their first lead since Earl Watson scored the first two points of the game. The Sonics are relentlessly attacking the offensive glass. On defense, Delonte West has a pair of saving blocks against Utah point guard Deron Williams.

The Sonics are getting after it defensively and have Utah's shooting down to 45.1%. They've also forced 16 Jazz turnovers while committing just 13 themselves.

No Green Rookie
End Third Quarter: Utah 78, Sonics 75

Tonight we are seeing the full breadth of Sonics rookie Jeff Green's game. Green came up big in the third quarter, aggressively taking the ball to the hole and drawing fouls, tipping in a Wally Szczerbiak miss and drawing a charge on Utah forward Carlos Boozer. Green has 13 points and has gotten to the free-throw line nine times tonight. The rookie is fearless about attacking the basket.

As for my prediction there were more free throws to come, that turned out to be accurate. The teams combined to attempt 27 free throws in the third quarter, making it difficult for each side to amass much of a flow. Ultimately, the Sonics find themselves down three and very much within striking distance as we head to the final period.

Life at the Line
Third Quarter: Utah 69, Sonics 66

The first half of this game was relatively cleanly played, with just 20 combined free-throw attempts by the two teams. This third quarter has bogged down quite a bit more. With 2:59 left in the period, already the teams have shot 13 free throws. With both sides in the bonus, there are surely more to come. It's debatable how much the teams are benefiting from being in the bonus, however. The Sonics are hitting 68.8% of their attempts, Utah just 58.8%. Neither team has found much success from downtown either; they've combined to hit 3-for-17 (17.6%) of their three-point tries.

Dropping Dimes
Third Quarter: Utah 64, Sonics 56

Earl Watson already has easily surpassed his season high for assists. That was eight, which Watson had by halftime. He's now up to 11 on the game. We noted as today's Kia Surprising Stat that Watson handed out 16 assists against the Jazz in the last matchup between these teams at KeyArena, tying the most a Sonics player has ever had against Utah. Watson's got a shot at matching or even breaking that record tonight.

The Jazz offense has been clicking in this third quarter, and Utah is getting assists from both Andrei Kirilenko and point guard Deron Williams. They've got eight assists apiece.

At Half, Sonics Hanging Around
Halftime: Utah 52, Sonics 46

Gordan Giricek's dunk at the end of the first half gives Utah a 52-46 lead as the two teams head for the locker room. You probably would have expected a higher-scoring half than this, but Utah went with the more defensive-minded frontcourt duo of Jarron Collins and Paul Millsap throughout the second quarter instead of Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur. The Jazz's leading scorer at the half is reserve forward Matt Harpring, with nine points. Chris Wilcox is the only scorer in double-figures on other side, having put up 14 points.

Millsap vs. Collison
Second Quarter: Utah 46, Sonics 39

In today's Insider Preview, I chose Paul Millsap and Nick Collison as the marquee matchup to watch. Lo and behold, it has turned out to be a very entertaining clash, even if it is not a stereotypically great matchup. Collison and Millsap have both been working on the glass. Millsap has a game-high five rebounds and Collison has four to lead the Sonics. Collison's best battle was actually with Jarron Collins as they fought for position under the basket. Both players ended up on the ground, but Collison drew the foul.

Wilcox Solid
Second Quarter: Utah 41, Sonics 37

Quietly, Chris Wilcox has been having a pretty big game for the Sonics. He leads all scorers with 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting. Wilcox has done an excellent job of running the floor not just to score in transition but also to establish early post position and be able to seal off his defender. Teammates have done a good job of looking for Wilcox in the post.

Wilcox Solid
Second Quarter: Utah 41, Sonics 37

Mercifully, Matt Harpring has returned to the bench after scoring nine points on 4-of-5 shooting in his stint on the floor. Paul Millsap and Jarron Collins play on - it's been a while since we've seen Utah's All-Star frontcourt of Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur.

Bench Breakdown
Second Quarter: Utah 36, Sonics 30

The bench has been a big topic of discussion in Utah after Jerry Sloan went with a short rotation in Wednesday's win over Cleveland. So far tonight, the Jazz has gotten solid contributions from the reserve unit. Notably, veteran forward Matt Harpring has six points on 3-for-3 shooting. The active Paul Millsap has three rebounds and Jarron Collins has added a bucket.

The major question mark for the Jazz remains backing up point guard Deron Williams. Sloan has adopted the John Stockton Memorial End of First Quarter Rest for Williams, sitting him at the end of the quarter and through the quarter break to maximize consecutive time on the bench. There's a noticeable difference when Williams is on the floor for the Jazz.

Sonics Clamp Down
End First Quarter: Utah 28, Sonics 25

The Sonics finish the first quarter on an 8-0 run, having held the Jazz scoreless over the last two minutes and 50 seconds of the period. The team did a much better job on the defensive glass and started picking up offensive rebounds as well. Johan Petro came in for a very nice play, battling in traffic for the offensive board and putting it right back up and in for the score.

Strange statistical note: Andrei Kirilenko had seven of the eight Utah assists in the first quarter. Earl Watson had five of the six recorded by the Sonics.

Something Brewing
First Quarter: Utah 28, Sonics 21

In the intro tonight, I cited Deron Williams, Mehmet Okur and Carlos Boozer as leading the Utah offense. I contemplated giving a nod to Ronnie Brewer, the second-year shooting guard who is actually third on the team in scoring at 16.2 points per game. Looks like I should have. In the early going, Brewer has a team-high eight points on 3-for-3 shooting. He and Sonics swingman Damien Wilkins are reaping the benefits of simply running the floor hard. Wilkins had a dunk on the last Sonics possession and now is headed to the free-throw line after this timeout, having caught the Utah defense napping.

The Sonics Dance Team is on the floor during this timeout. Last night, the Dance Team unveiled its 2007-08 calendar at Sport Restaurant and Grill. It's on sale now, and you can purchase it online through the Sonics & Storm Team Shop.

Jazz Using Offensive Glass
First Quarter: Utah 18, Sonics 11

Utah is off to a quick start on offense, thanks in large part to offensive rebounding. The Jazz is annually one of the league's top teams in second-chance points. Tonight, Utah has four offensive rebounds of seven misses, scoring a couple of times off the boards. The shooting has been about even, so that's why the Jazz has taken an early lead.

This is the most confident play we've seen from Earl Watson at the point during the young season. He's got four points and two assists in the early going.

No Changes Tonight, Likely Sunday
Pregame

Sonics Head Coach P.J. Carlesimo hinted after Wednesday's game that we might see some changes to the starting lineup and the rotation tonight. After further deliberation, Carlesimo will go tonight with the same groupings that have played the last couple of games and most of this young season. There were a few reasons for that decision.

"Take your pick, I don't know which was the more important (reason)," said Carlesimo. "I'd like to practice them for a day before we change it. [The Sonics took Thursday off.] I'd like to know who's available and who's not before we make a change and find out one day later that we've got a little different situation than we had tonight. (Also), Utah, if you look at their characteristics, we match up better physically with the team we have been playing."

Luke Ridnour is moving closer to being able to shed the protective facemask he has worn for the last month, and Kurt Thomas could test his strained right hamstring tomorrow in practice and return to the lineup shortly thereafter. Those two factors could play a role in the coaching staff's decision-making. Either way, there will likely be a reevaluation after tonight's game.

"I would expect there to be some changes Sunday," said Carlesimo.

Signing On
Pregame

Welcome to KeyArena for the first Friday Night Live presented by Miller Genuine Draft of the 2007-08 season. We've got a good matchup on tap tonight as the defending Northwest Division champion Utah Jazz invades KeyArena, looking to snap a two-game losing streak against the Sonics. The Sonics will have the challenge of stopping one of the NBA's top offenses, powered by the trio of Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur. It should be fun, so stay with us throughout the evening.